Sunday, August 5, 2012

charlie's two

My little man is growing up so fast! I can't believe it's been two years since he was born. The time just flies. Charlie has brought so much joy to our lives. He is just our happy, go-lucky boy. He is so much busier than the girls were at this age. He's also less dramatic than the girls!

His favorite things are milk, tools (real and play), his blanket and stuffed animals, milk, music, helping daddy, cuddling and playing with mommy, milk, and his sisters. Charlie is a milk-aholic. I only give him small amounts at a time these days because he's constantly taking the gallon of milk out of the fridge and bringing it to me. And I guess there's always a look on my face like, "Seriously?!" because now he says in an authoritative voice while pointing his finger, "one moi".

Charlie is such a little helper. If I'm cleaning or emptying the dishwasher, he's right there getting in on the action. And same with Jordan. Not only does he love tools (real tools), he also likes to be our little assistant. And he's a pretty good listener when he's got a job to do. I'm hoping those 'terrible twos' are worse with girls. Most of the time, Charlie is a good enough at obeying and I reeeallly hope it stays that way (my energy is wearing thinner these days.) I do have to chase him down the driveway quite frequently since he's always making a mad dash to the road. Luckily our road is pretty quiet.

Charlie had been in a big-boy bed for a few weeks and it was going pretty well except... he was crawling out of bed at 6am instead of 7ish and waking his sisters up as well with his endless chatter! And I likeneed an hour of quiet alone time in the morning. For some reason, the crib both helps him to sleep in longer and keeps mommy a little more sane.

Charlie loves to wrestle with daddy and Natalie and Ruby. He's so rough and tough! And yet, he adores baby dolls and real babies. And he's just a sweetheart! He's my little lover-boy. If we're on the couch together, he fights his way through the girls to be by me. And sometimes when we're sitting there, he starts to rub my arm or leg. There really is this special connection between a boy and his mom :)

Natalie and Ruby are pretty fond of Charlie, too. Natalie likes to get him dressed and even changes his diapers occasionally. She loves to watch out for him. Ruby washes Charlie up in the bathtub, wrestles with him, and enjoys bossing him around. There is a healthy dose of playing and fighting that goes on between all of them.

On Charlie's birthday, we went out for a playdate with some fellow mom-friends and their kiddos. I brought a cake and we all sang 'Happy Birthday' to Charlie. The whole time we were singing, he had this big smile on his face but he was rubbing his eyes and wouldn't look at anyone. And when we finished, he took his fists away from his eyes and we saw that they were all teary! He got all sentimental or something! He had a great day. Me and the girls kept reminding him that it was his birthday so then he'd clap about it and concentrate on forming his fingers into '2'. We had a party for him over the weekend and he absolutely loves all of his new presents. I am hoping to get him potty-trained by the time our baby girl comes so I bought him a potty-chair and undies (does that make me a horrible mom? The boy doesn't need anymore toys!) Today, before I could even show him how to use his own personal toilet, he told Natalie he had to go so she helped him out of his diaper and he sat down and used it! He's gone a few times on the big toilet but usually I have to prompt him to do it. So hopefully....

As much as I wish Charlie would literally stay my little boy forever, I also love to see him learn and grow. He is talking a lot more plus with more clarity and understands so much, too. He's developing a sense of humor which is so fun! He doesn't talk back to me yet and I'm pretty sure I'm his best friend. Just hoping it's not the calm before the storm?!

We love you, Charlie Tyler!! I hope your second year of life was as enjoyable to you as you were to us!